Evaluation of the Bureau of Justice Assistance Mental Health Court Initiative at Seven Sites in the United States, 2003-2004 (ICPSR 4114)

This study evaluated seven mental health courts that were
partially funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. Data were
collected on 285 formal referrals to the seven courts between November
1, 2003, and January 31, 2004. For every referral, court staff completed
a one-page questionnaire that covered (1) identification of the
referring agent, (2) characteristics of the referred person, including
age, gender, race, criminal charges, and type of mental disorder, and
(3) the disposition decision.

Access to these data is restricted. Users interested in obtaining these data must complete a Restricted Data Use Agreement, specify the reasons for the request, and obtain IRB approval or notice of exemption for their research.

Universe:
Individuals formally referred to the seven mental health
courts covered by this study between November 1, 2003, and January 31,
2004.

Data Types:
survey data

Methodology

Study Purpose:
This study evaluated seven mental health courts
that were partially funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. They
were located in Santa Clara County, California, Orange County, North
Carolina, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Washoe County, Nevada,
Brooklyn, New York, Bonneville County, Idaho, and Orange County,
California. Research questions concerned (1) how cases were referred,
processed, and disposed of by the courts and (2) whether there were
factors that distinguished cases accepted by the court from cases
referred to the court but not accepted. The researchers were also
interested in whether mental health courts, like the majority of other
jail diversion programs, would have older, white women
disproportionately represented in comparison to their numbers in the
criminal justice system as a whole.

Study Design:
Data were collected on 285 people who were
formally referred to the seven courts between November 1, 2003, and
January 31, 2004. A formal referral was defined slightly differently
for each court, but, in general, it was a person who passed through
that court's pre-determined referral process. Court staff completed a
one-page questionnaire for every formal referral during the study
period. The questionnaire had three parts: (1) identification of the
referring agent, (2) characteristics of the referred person, and (3)
the disposition decision. The questionnaires were received back from
the courts between November 2003 and March 2004.

Sample:
In 2002 the Bureau of Justice Assistance began funding 23
mental health courts in the United States. This study covered the seven
that were operational at the time the study began.

Data Source:

Data were gathered through questionnaires filled out by
staff at the seven mental health courts.

Description of Variables:
Variables include referral date, referring agent,
age, gender, race, most serious criminal charge, type of crime, number
of current misdemeanors and felonies, whether the person had a major
mental disorder, type of disorder, primary Axis I diagnosis, whether
the person had substance abuse problems, date of referral disposition,
referral disposition outcome, if accepted, whether the person
enrolled, reason if not accepted, and several derived variables.

Response Rates:
Completed surveys were received from all seven sites
involved in the study.